What Will It Take To Make TEAM-Math Work At Your School?

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  • Teachers need to develop new knowledge (Hiebert, 1999).
    • Adopting a new textbook or implementing a new curriculum guide is not enough.
    • TEAM-Math professional development activities incorporate proven, research-based information.
  • Teachers also need opportunities for ongoing (measured in years) collaboration for purposes of planning (Hiebert, 1999), which includes the following characteristics:
    • Focused on the explicit goal of improving students’ achievement of clear learning goals.
    • Anchored by attention to students’ thinking, the curriculum, and pedagogy.
    • Includes opportunities to observe their practices in action and to reflect on the reasons for their effectiveness.
  • Structural changes must be made in how schools operate (Pourdavood, Cowen, & Svec, 2002):
    • Providing adequate time for mathematics instruction.
    • Establishing effective teacher leadership structures and accessing outside expertise as needed.
    • Restructuring the curriculum to become more focused.
    • Reexamining assessment practices.
  • Parents need to be informed about and involved in the effort to improve mathematics education (Peressini, 1997).
    • Parents can be a powerful resource to support reform efforts.
    • If not properly informed, they may undermine or derail your efforts.
  • Administrators should be aware of the complexity of reform and should avoid making decisions that unintentionally undermine the effort (Briars, 1999).
    • Administrators need to recognize and value the new instructional approaches.
    • Teachers need materials that support their efforts to change.
    • Teachers need embedded professional development and in-class support.
  • Teachers and administrators need to be aware of the research that supports the positive consequences of reform for all students. (See other fact sheets in this series.)
    • Be aware of disinformation that is spread on the Internet! Not everything you read is true!
    • Look for solid scientific research, not anecdotes designed to create dissension.
    • MathematicallySane.com is a good source of balanced information about math reform.
  • All parties involved need to be PATIENT. Improvement may not be immediate. However, it will be cumulative and long-lasting.

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Last updated Tuesday, April 12, 2005 11:10 AM
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